By Charlie Loran • Published: 07 Oct 2020 • 22:15
A NEW digital health pass is being trialled this week and it could revolutionize the way we travel during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The aim of CommonPass is to enable safer and much smoother travel, allowing travelers to carry their COVID-19 test results in a digital format that is instantly recognisable to border officials at the country they’re entering.
The CommonPass Framework, meanwhile, gives countries greater transparency and control when it comes to assessing the health status of arrivals.
At present, travelers COVID-19 PCR test results are frequently printed out, with the results often obtained from unknown or uncertified labs, and written in a foreign language that border staff can’t understand.
Launched by the World Economic Forum and The Commons Project, a Swiss non-profit foundation, the CommonPass would introduce certification and standardisation to the process.
Travelers would take a COVID-19 test at a certified lab, upload the results to their phone, and complete any other health-related questionnaires required by the country they’re going to.
CommonPass checks the traveler has met the entry requirements and then generates a QR code that can be scanned by airline staff and border agents.
“Without the ability to trust COVID-19 tests, and eventually vaccine records, across international borders, many countries will feel compelled to retain full travel bans and mandatory quarantines for as long as the pandemic persists,” said Dr. Bradley Perkins, chief medical officer of The Commons Project and former chief strategy and innovation officer at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
“With trusted individual health data, countries can implement more nuanced health screening requirements for entry.”
The CommonPass is currently being trialled by Cathay Pacific Airways and United Airlines on certain flights between London, New York, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
Cathay Pacific will first trial the scheme with volunteers on a flight between Hong Kong International Airport and Singapore’s Changi Airport.
United Airlines will debut the trial with volunteers flying between London Heathrow and Newark Liberty International Airport.
It’s a great idea in concept, but how much of our personal information will be given to yet another digital platform?
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Manchester born mummy with a two year old diva (2020), living on the Costa del Sol for just short of a decade. Former chef and restaurateur, holistic health fanatic and lover of long words.
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